Mothering Sunday is March 11th

MOTHERING SUNDAY: MARCH 11TH

Mother’s Day in Your Church.

St John's has a Mothering Sunday service at 11 a.m. on Sunday March 11th. The servcie will last about an hour so there will still be time for that special lunch date. There will be a time in the service when children give ﬂowers to their mothers, or to those who have played a mother’s role in their life.

If you’re preparing for Mother’s Day at home, it can be agood time to help children learn about God’s love for them too, which is also like a mother’s love. Here are some things to do together as you think about that love: •Make a few pom pom chicks, (you can save them for Easter Day as a table decoration): see:http://www.homemade-gifts-meade-easy.com/easter-craft-ideas.html•

Ask your child who the chicks’ mummy is. If you like, you can talk about how they are born from an egg. •Talk about how a hen protects her little chicks by hiding them under her wings. She feeds them and holds them close to her to keep them warm and safe.

•Think about how God’s love is like this. We are like God’s little chicks and God wants to keep us safe too, just like the hen. •Why not play at being hens and chicks together, spreading out arms and gathering underneath them? •At home, you can also read one of the Bible stories that has a mother’s love at its centre – for example, the story of Moses.

A mother’s love is so special it’s worth celebrating, but some people may ﬁnd Mother’s Day difﬁcult for lots of different reasons. Some people may not have a mother who they see any more. She may have died, or they just never knew her. Some parents ﬁnd Mother’s Day sad because they have lost a child and still grieve.

As well as celebrating the love of mothers, a church will always remember that Mother’s Day can be difﬁcult as well, and will often say prayers or provide a place to light a candle during the service. The vicar can even offer a conﬁdential listening ear and prayer at this time, if that is something you would like.